One of the ongoing problems in training athletes in sports which require the handling and/or catching of a ball, such as football, basketball, soccer, and baseball, is teaching the athlete to track a ball in motion and react quickly to unexpected deflections of the path of the ball, preferably with their hands.
Defenders employ a dual strategy of first attempting to impair the vision of offensive players attempting to handle or receive the ball in motion, and secondly to deflect or intercept the ball if possible. The offensive player is put in a position of double jeopardy. First, his ability to track the ball in motion is impaired which in and of itself limits the time he has to react and handle or catch the ball. Further, if the defender is successful in deflecting the ball, the offensive player has even less time to react to the change in the path of the ball.
In addition to deflections caused by opposing players, the ball in motion may be deflected by playing surface imperfections, or the shape of the ball. Since the advent of these sports, various techniques have been used in an attempt to improve and maximize a player's ability to track, and then to handle or catch the ball.
One of the problems associated with attempting to increase a receiver's or handler's skill level involves the use of that person's hands. There is a tendency among athletes to "catch" a ball with their body, then wrap their arms around the ball. The preferable method in a strict athletic sense is for the receiver to use his hands which provide the surer reception and allow a quicker reaction to unexpected changes in the flight of the ball. In order for the player to use his hands to catch or handle the ball, a high level of concentration, as well as correct hand placement prior to the reception, is required.
A number of training techniques have been developed in attempts to train athletes to better handle or catch balls in motion. Most often, the technique used has been a practice drill which requires at least three players. The first player is the one who throws or kicks the ball. The second player acts as a defender who actively attempts to prevent the successful handling or catching of the ball. The third player, the object of the drill, is attempting to successfully complete the handling or catching of the ball. A typical example of such a drill is a receiver's drill in football in which the quarterback passes the football to the receiver at the end of the prescribed run with a third person acting as the defender. The defender places his hands in front of the receiver to impair the receiver's vision. The defender also may or may not attempt to intercept or deflect the ball to prevent the receiver from catching it.
This technique has several drawbacks. First, it requires at least three players. Also, the players acting as quarterback and defender must have skill levels that allow them not only to simply complete the drill, but also to challenge the receiver and increase his skill levels. Finally, the player acting as defender frequently is an offensive player, since defensive players usually are taking part in other drills This reduces the number of times a player can run a drill since offensive players are required to play defender instead taking part in the offensive training portion of the drill.
The use of a live defender does not necessarily improve the receiver's tracking ability, his concentration, or his ability to use his hands to catch or handle the ball. A practice defender has a difficult time attempting to recreate game conditions during training exercise. Since the defender knows the drill to be run, the defender tends to cause disruptions in the completion of the pass, and deflections of the ball that do not realistically reflect what typically happens in an actual game. In an actual game, the defender is frequently lunging or rushing to prevent the pass from being completed. In this situation, the defender frequently will cause only a minor deflection in the ball's path by grazing it. In any circumstance, the effect of the defender on the ball is unpredictable. In the practice situation, where the defender is already aware of the direction in which the ball is going to be thrown, the defender's placement and reaction to the ball is artificial and prevents both the pass receiver and the defender from running a realistic drill at full speed. At the same time, the drill does not place emphasis on improving the athlete's concentration on the ball, and the placement and use of his hands to catch the ball.
While this discussion has concentrated on the forward pass thrown by a quarterback to a receiver, as an example, it is equally applicable in football to a running back who must learn to receive a lateral or shovel pass. Other sports having similar requirements of athletes for handling or catching balls are basketball, where players must learn to pass, catch, and rebound in a crowd near or under the basketball goal while being defended; the soccer player who handles the ball with his feet; the soccer goalie who in fact handles the ball with his hands; and the baseball player who must learn to field a baseball cleanly, even when the baseball is deflected by a rough edge between the infield and the base path for example.
As can be seen from the above discussion, there are a number of desirable characteristics for an apparatus to train athletes. It would be desirable to have an apparatus to train athletes who handle or catch balls that minimizes the personnel needed to execute drills. It also would be desirable to have an apparatus for the training of receivers and ball handlers that causes athletes to concentrate on tracking the ball and using their hands. Further, it would be desirable to have an apparatus for training athletes to catch or handle balls which would allow ball handling training drills to be repeated multiple times in a predictable fashion, while causing the ball itself to be deflected in an unpredictable manner. Additionally, it would be desirable to have an apparatus to train athletes to catch or handle balls, that could be easily moved, set up, and used. It also would be desirable to have an apparatus for training athletes to catch or handle balls which would be adaptable for a variety of training drills. It further would be desirable to have a method for training athletes to improve their ability to concentrate on, track, and catch a ball in motion with their hands. It additionally would be desirable to have a method for training athletes to handle or catch balls in motion that is predictably repeatable. It would also be desirable to have a method for training athletes to handle or catch balls in motion, that can travel with the athlete to remote locations.
While the discussion here relates to apparata and methods for training athletes to catch or handle balls, it is not intended that the invention be limited to this situation. It will be obvious from the description that follows that the present invention will be useful in other applications with problems common to those described herein.